5 ways to keep your kids healthy

It goes without saying that your child is extremely important to you. So as a parent, you won’t even think twice about taking care of your kids. You put their needs above yours. And part of caring and taking care of your child involves keeping them happy and healthy.

If you want your child to maintain their health, you should keep an eye out for possible injury, dangers and avoid exposing them to illness. It’s your job to ensure your child stays active and spends regular time outdoors. Their mental health needs to be monitored regularly and communicate with your child about eating healthy and exercising.

More children these days are overweight or even obese than in previous generations. Regular physical activity can help prevent the serious health problems that are associated with carrying too much weight. And just like adults, kids needs at least three types of exercises regularly. These include aerobic, muscle and bone strengthening exercises.

Here are five more ways to keep your kids healthy and active.

Make sure they get enough sleep

Sleep is important and not just for the kids but the whole family. It helps to set your metabolism and resets your mood. Depending on your kid’s age, they should get around 10 hours of sleep every night. It’s essential as it helps with their physical growth. And going to bed at the same time every night will help with this. You should stick to a routine and only push back their bedtime if it’s necessary. Allow your child to sleep in if they went to bed later than usual.

The right amount of hours of sleep will allow their body to recover from illness or fight off potential infections.

Work out a healthy eating plan

Unfortunately, you won’t have control over everything your child eats. But when you can, make sure they follow a healthy eating plan. And instead of telling your children to eat nutritional foods, rather explain the importance of it. If they know there are specific foods that’ll make them taller or stronger, they’ll want to eat them. Teach them that healthy food is about growing and having the energy to get through the day.

Make sure that you always have fresh fruit and vegetables, whole-grain products and lean meats in your home. Read the labels of products to determine portion sizes and prepare meals that conform to those guidelines. And remember, you should follow a healthy eating plan too. You have to set the example.

Get your kids outside

Some of the benefits of exercising include bone and muscle health, creating positive emotions, reducing stress and preventing diseases later in life. An hour per day should be allocated for exercise. Go for a walk or cycle with them over weekends. A hike every second weekend will also be perfect. Whenever you get the opportunity, take them to the park. There is a lot of equipment they can play on that will keep them fit, the chin-up bars being one of them. You child’s musculature can be improved. The jungle gyms are also very effective for the development of muscle tone and structural muscles.

Your brains are eighty percent water, so hydration is important. Especially for growing little ones. You should teach your child to look at their urine to make sure it’s clear. If they see it’s yellow, they would know to drink more water.

Make sure your kids drink at least eight glasses of water per day. You can also allow them to drink milk or juice but in moderation.

Limit their sugar and junk food intake

If you want to prevent your kids from getting sick, you should try to minimise the amount of sugar in their diet. Sugar usually interferes with the body’s immune system by binding up the antibodies that the immune system needs to fight viruses. Kids with high sugar diets get sick more often.

Try to avoid buying sugary, fatty or heavily processed foods. You’re the initiator of the healthy eating plan. So if you don’t buy these foods, your child will turn to any unhealthy alternative that’s available in your fridge. As mentioned earlier, always make sure you have fresh fruit and vegetables available. Watch out for sneaky foods that appear healthy, because they aren’t as nutritious as expected. Read the labels on items such as low fat yoghurts, milkshakes and even fruit juices are often packed with bad sugars.